Parliament Is Off and Running, But to Where?

The monsoon session of India’s Parliament opened Monday as the Congress-led government and main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party looked set to lock horns over a host of issues.

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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh outside Parliament on the first day of monsoon session Monday.

The government is keen to get some key pending legislation aboard while the BJP is preparing to harangue the government on a range of issues from corruption and high prices to terrorism, farmers’ land rights and Telangana.

Besieged by a multitude of corruption scandals, the monsoon session will test the Congress party’s political management skills, especially after it went on the defensive during the previous winter and budget sessions of Parliament.

Thanks to the exit of Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, who was forced to resign Sunday by senior leaders of BJP over allegations that he benefitted from illegal mining, the Congress party has decided to go on the offensive instead.

Setting the stage for a tumultuous political war of words over the next six weeks, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the government was “ready to face any kind of questions” but the monsoon session should be allowed to function smoothly.

“We are not afraid of discussing issues of corruption. The opposition also has too many skeletons in its cupboard.” Mr. Singh told reporters in New Delhi Sunday. “It is our sincere desire that Parliament should debate and discuss all issues of national importance.”

BJP leader Sushma Swaraj reacted by criticizing the government for starting an argument ahead of the session: “The government is free to bring out all the arrows it has in its quiver. Let’s see who has more arrows,” she said on television news channels Monday.

“All the issues related to corruption would be raised in Parliament,” she said.

Some 81 pending bills are lined up for discussion during the six-week long session; many have a direct bearing on the lives of ordinary Indians.

Last week, the Cabinet gave its approval to the draft of the anti-corruption Lokpal Bill, which has left the Congress party at loggerheads with opposition parties, civil society and many citizens in general. The bill is set to be tabled in the Lok Sabha or lower house of Parliament during the monsoon session.

The crucial Land Acquisition Bill that seeks to provide a solution to the complex land acquisition problem across the country and the Food Security Bill that makes food a fundamental right are also expected to be introduced in the current session.

Political experts say the Karnataka issue had brought some respite for Congress by taking the sheen off the BJP’s campaign against corruption.

“The mining scandal in Karnataka has put the party on a back foot,” said Prof. Mahesh Rangarajan at New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University. “It is still not over for the BJP.”

He added, however, that “the success of the monsoon session will depend on the state of relations between the Congress party and the BJP.”

Saibal Gupta, political analyst at the Asian Development Research Institute, a Patna-based think tank, said political leaders on both sides faced a bigger challenge this time since “they are all in the dock and under severe public scrutiny.”

“Both the Congress and BJP should jettison their differences and get involved in building the nation. The Parliament session is a great opportunity for the political class to redeem its lost status,” he said.

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